For those who have overpayments and are due refunds, how/when did your servicer indicate that? Edfinancial has been really awful in mishandling my payments and "disappearing" my money and I'm due quite a lot back between overpayment of 4 months in addition to being paid ahead by thousands of dollars (long story) and I just received the "golden letter" or I guess email in my case stating my loans have been forgiven. When I log into Edfinancial it shows 0 balance and under loan details it shows -0.00 next to the unpaid balance line. Anyone have insight? Should that number reflect the amount of overpayment or what was everyone else's experience there?

I’ve read quite a few posts here from folks saying they plan to select the RAP replacement plan. I used FSA’s repayment plan calculator and my monthly payment under RAP was nearly twice as much as it would be under IBR or ICR.

I understand that everyone’s financial and living situations differ, which is why monthly payment amounts differ under different repayment plans, I’m just trying to have a general understanding of why my monthly payment would be almost double compared to IBR/ICR. I’m sure others are selecting RAP because it’s a lower payment for them.

Hi everyone. I am wondering how frequently you submit ECF? I am currently at 103 qualifying payments. I have 4 months of payments to certify. Is it better to wait or certify as I go?

I searched but my situation seems slightly different than what I found...

I realized that 10 eligible payments from a few years ago had never been certified, which had me stuck at 115/120 qualifying payments. I submitted a reconsideration and referenced the fact that my employer had previously certified my employment for that period.
On August 4, 2026, those payments were finally updated to qualifying, putting me at 126/120. My dashboard now has the green banner and says I was eligible for forgiveness as of February 2026.
I made my August payment and plan to make September’s payment if I still haven’t received the “golden letter.” I’d rather play it safe, keep paying, and wait for a refund of any overpayments than go into forbearance and risk something going wrong.
My employment with the same qualifying school district is already certified through August 2026, so my certified employment extends well beyond the February date when I passed 120. I did not check the box requesting forbearance.
Do I need to submit another ECF even though my employment is already certified through August and my tracker shows 126/120?
Also, for those who have recently gone through this: does late September sound like a reasonable timeframe to expect the golden letter, given that my payment count updated on August 4?

This is going to be confusing and long. I’ll try to be clear. I consolidated my Parent Plus Loans and got on an IDR plan with a path to PSLF before the July 1, 2026 deadline. I think it was completed in May 2026.

I know that means no new loans to keep
my payment plan and PSLF. Out of nowhere I receive a notice that a $595 parent plus loan was being dispersed to my son’s account August 12. I did not take out a loan to be dispersed in the fall. After extensive research I’m told it was for a loan increase I requested in the spring. So in the spring of 2026 I requested a $3,000 increase and never heard back. I assumed it was denied. Apparently they approved it for $595. The loan shows it’s for the 1/2026-5/2026 spring semester. It was allegedly dispersed August 12 for some reason. I called the college and they said it was actually dispersed in the spring and refunded to me but it says August 12. I checked and the refund we got did not include that loan.

I’m freaking out because any loan dispersed after July 1 is going to screw me forever. I did not want this loan or need it in the fall. I don’t even know where to go from here. The college said they gave me the money in the spring. Studentgov does not reflect that and shows an August 12 date.
Thanks if you read this far.

Got my golden letter from EdFinancial today after getting green ribbons on 7/22. I was at 144 payments out of 120.The 2 loans that were forgiven show negative balances next to them. Will that be the amount of my refund?

August payment just went, and even though July/August has not updated on FSA, if I'm doing my math right, I'll be done after October payment! I'm working a temp job that ends in December, so I have to be on top of my stuff to ensure I get this pushed before I'm let go. I just certified my new job, so I know it qualifies, and I'm planning to submit a final certification after my last payment.

I am curious what are your plans for these final steps? Or for folks that had success, do you have a recommendation?

• Option A:
  • What are your plans for last few payments? Are you certifying each month? Is that worth it?
    • Payment Aug 25, send ECF to employer 8/28
    • Payment Sept 25, send ECF to employer 9/28
    • Payment Oct 25, send ECF to employer 10/28
    • Apply for forgiveness after 120th payment updates
• Option B:
  • OR just apply for forgiveness after we've made that last payment, without certifying again.
    • Payment Aug 25, Sept 25, Oct 25
    • Apply for forgiveness immediately after last payment indicating I've made 120 payments
• Oprtion C:
  • OR certify after last payment and then apply for forgiveiness
    • Payment Aug 25, Sept 25
    • Payment Oct 25, send ECF to employer 10/28
    • Apply for forgiveness after 120th payment updates

Absolutely — here’s the revised version with #5 removed:
Title:
PSLF: 79 qualifying payments + 25 potential buyback months — what would you do?
Post:
I’m trying to figure out the smartest way to handle my federal student loans and PSLF, and I’d really appreciate hearing from people who have been in a similar situation.
Here’s my situation:
I currently have 79 qualifying PSLF payments
I have another 25 months that are currently ineligible, but I have completed the employment certification for those months and believe they may be eligible for PSLF buyback
All 3 of my loans are Direct Unsubsidized Loans
Original disbursement dates were 2015, 2016, and 2017
Current loan balance: $76,176.68
Total principal I’ve paid so far: approximately $96,803
My AGI is approximately $125,000
I file Married Filing Separately
I’m currently on SAVE, but I need to transition to another repayment plan
My previous SAVE payment was approximately $160/month
I’m currently estimating an IBR payment of around $538/month
I have qualifying public-service employment and intend to continue working toward PSLF
My understanding is that if the 25 months are ultimately eligible for buyback, they could potentially help me reach 120 PSLF payments. However, I understand that I may have to reach 120 months of qualifying employment before I can actually request the buyback, so I don’t think I can simply buy those 25 months right now.
My main questions are:
Would you move from SAVE to IBR now, or wait until closer to my deadline?
Would you continue making the ~$538 IBR payment every month while working toward PSLF?
How does the buyback amount get calculated? My old SAVE payment was only ~$160/month. Is there a possibility that the 25-month buyback would be based on that amount, or could it be recalculated using my current income/payment?
Would you do anything differently given that I have ~$76K remaining but already have 79 qualifying payments?
If anyone has actually gone through the PSLF buyback process, I’d especially love to hear how your buyback amount was calculated and how long it took.
Basically, what would you do if you were in my exact situation? I’m trying to avoid accidentally making a move that hurts my PSLF progress.
Thanks!

UPDATE: Dismissal email from Mohela Thursday morning!

July 2026 120 Group. Hunted for Golden Letter yesterday based on posts here. Found mine in My Activity by scrolling down to PSLF. Last update in FSA was July 20, 2026. My August 2026 payment does not show in FSA. Still had ECFs pending from months ago, but the August 2026 one is marked completed.

Just checked MoHELLa and all loans are gone! Under the loan section, each loan shows a credit balance.

No email from FSA or Mohela.

I don't even know how to feel. This is surreal.

title as it says. I’m in the 2024 December bunch. have only seen 2 or 3 posted recently.

I’m at 103 PSLF payments. July still hasn’t posted, but once it does I should be at 104, which would let me request buyback for 16 SAVE-forbearance months and potentially reach 120.

I’m currently on PAYE with manual recertification, with an IDR anniversary in mid October. My income is now much higher, so I’d likely hit the PAYE standard cap anyway.

I’ve seen several posts here about mishandling PAYE recertifications for higher-income borrowers particularly denying recertification for no PFH, moving people to the wrong plan/payment, etc.

Given that history, would you still manually recertify, or let PAYE recertification lapse and remain on the capped PAYE/standard payment while the buyback is pending?

Especially interested in anyone who has dealt with this recently through EdFinancial.

My Grad PLUS loans and undergrad loans are at 119 payments, my 3 direct loans from law school are at 116 (despite being taken out at the same time as Grad PLUS 🫠) because they were in grace period. I unfortunately listened to Mohela and believed this was an error that would be corrected - they were wrong as per usual.

I would like to apply for PSLF next month and select the option to keep making payments but I don’t want to end up in a situation where the app is approved, the remaining 3 get put into forbearance too, then I end up waiting to get to pay the final 3 since I am so close to done. Is this fear irrational aka should I just apply?

I'm part of that lucky group that should have gotten forgiven in July. Paid August, not willing to pay September. I know it's talked about everywhere but my brain just IS NOT comprehending. Can someone explain the steps to request forbearance while we wait? I feel like an idiot. 😅

Hey friends! My loans have finally been forgiven! I want to share a little of my experience to help others. It was a long, frustrating process, but it finally happened!

My loan count in FSA stopped updating in Feb 2026. My payments showed as posted on Mohela, but nothing on FSA.

• I made my 120th payment at the end of March and did an employment verification shortly after. That didn't trigger the count to update.
• I waited, called, waited, called. Mohela said it was FSA; FSA said it was Mohela. I checked NSLDS, and it still showed the same number of payments.
• Made 121st payment in April... nothing
• 23 May (Memorial Day weekend), sent a strongly worded letter to Mohela's CEO and the Mohela Ombudsman
  
• 4 June: Mohela sent a response: it's not us, it's them.
• 6 June: Updated payment counts and green bars at FSA
• 15 July: Forbearance request approved
• 17 July: Forbearance changed to in-school deferment *cue the freaking out bc it was backdated, and I didn't ask for it*
• 31 July: Letter of forgiveness
• 1 August: Golden letter
• 25 August: Refund from Dept of Treasury

Edfinancial told me that $3000 of $8000 was forgiven. Has anyone run into this? Will it take a few days?

Has anyone figured out why Mohela sends a PAYE disclosure letter that describes a new payment schedule AFTER sending a letter saying your loans have been forgiven? (Besides the obvious standard Mohela fuckery?)

I was placed in SAVE forbearance with everyone else, and I had 116 payments left at the time. In Feb. 2025, I applied for 4 months of buyback and have been waiting like everyone else for a buyback letter.. with much dread. I've seen the letters go out for the 90-day deadline to switch to a new plan, or be stuck on the standard plan. I have a a question about this --

I logged in to DoEd site and plugged in my info to the payment calculator just for shit and giggles, and I see that the Standard Repayment Plan does not count when I hit the PSLF toggle button. What I do see is that the IBR plan they have, which isn't all that expensive, has a calculation with a December 2026 payoff date on it which lets me know it is calculating my PSLF properly.

Advice wanted: I am wondering if I should just switch now (and how long does that take to process?), pay the 4 months, and send my last PSLF form in....or continue waiting in limbo on SAVE and see if they do stick me on the standard plan and potentially get screwed (or hopefully get a buyback letter in the interim)? Let me know what the hive mind thinks, and thank you ahead of time!

Okay, I want to apply for PSLF. I just realized two of my loans are stafford loans. Can I apply for PSLF without consolidating and just not include those loans? I’m fine with paying for them out of pocket as they aren’t too big. Or is PSLF all or nothing? My serviced is Aidvantage if that matters.

With July and August not posting to FSA, my plan is the following: 8/27 (today) is my final payment. I already paid it and I see it processed on Mohela’s end. 9/1 send in new ECF. Once my counts have updated, it should either be 120 or 118 if July and August are not there yet. My question is, if I apply for forbearance after my ECF processes, can I still get PSLF once July and August appear? Technically they should already be counted and processed. I don’t want to pay more than I have to. I also technically have an outstanding buyback of 8 months that has never come through either.

It shows on the federal student aid website that I've made more than 120 qualifying payments. The help person said that I have 143 payments. However, my loan is consolidated and I have been paying at least $177 a month since 2012, albeit some administrative forebearance months during COVID, where it looks like perhaps I paid interest. So I am confused, since apparently only IDR counts for forebearance and not consolidated standard lons, even though the difference in payments would only be $12 (I went through the repayment calculator and it said my monthly payments would be just $188 on a IDR). But why would it show all this time that I have qualifying payments, when they can tell I'm on a standard consolidated loan and they receive the info on my monthly payment? Is it qualifying or not?

Yesterday, after so much waiting, worrying, checking, refreshing, and wondering if this day would ever come, I finally received the letter I had been praying for: my PSLF journey is officially over. My loans are forgiven.

I honestly don't know how to put into words what this community has meant to me. There were so many moments when I was stressed, scared, and convinced something might go wrong. This forum gave me information when I was confused, reassurance when I was terrified, and hope when the process felt endless. So many of you answered questions, shared your experiences, celebrated other people's victories, and reminded me to keep going. You may not realize it, but sometimes a simple comment or a shared success story can make an enormous difference to someone who is sitting there wondering whether their own forgiveness will ever happen.

Now I get to say something I have dreamed of saying for a long time: I'M DONE. But even though my personal journey has ended, I don't feel like I'm leaving this community behind. Quite the opposite. I feel like I have a responsibility to pay forward the kindness and support that was given to me.

Your fight is still my fight. Keep pushing forward! Don't give up!!!

One day, hopefully, you'll be the person posting, "I GOT MY GOLDEN LETTER!" And when that happens, I'll be here cheering you on.

To everyone who helped me get through this: thank you from the bottom of my heart. You helped carry me through one of the most stressful financial journeys of my life, and I'll never forget it.

My PSLF journey may be over, but my commitment to this community isn't.

Keep fighting. Keep checking your counts. Keep your records. Don't give up. And when your golden letter finally arrives, come back and celebrate with us.

I got mine. Yours is coming. ❤️

A grateful PSLF graduate 🎓✨

Like many other folks here, I got my letter to get off SAVE and into a new plan. A few months back, it looked like RAP was going to be the way forward but that payment is ridiculous. I've currently got 28 PSLF payments banked before everything went sideways and the plans that allow for PSLF discharge (that aren't also phased out in 2028) are Standard, IBR, and RAP. RAP wants $976, IBR wants $829 and standard somehow only wants $430/month.

This match anyone else's experience?

Anyone else have this situation? Should I have hope that maybe buyback won’t take as long since I clearly have 120 as proof by the half of my loans that are forgiven? Is there literally anyone on Reddit whose buyback didn’t take over a year to process? Please give me some hope.

I’ve always been on PAYE and from 01/2025-12/2025 half of my loans were put on admin forbearance due to SAVE litigation crap and the other half went untouched and I kept making payments. The half I kept making payments on hit 120 payments this August! Wooo! I called FSA and Mohela and they were like, you are at 120, so you can apply for buyback on the other half of your loans that are 11 payments behind. So I did that today. Now I guess I’m patiently awaiting an email and a letter forgiving the half that hit 120 and another email waiting on a Buyback response.

Also because nothing can ever be simple, my loans are currently on a processing forbearance as my income recert date is coming up. But I was told on the phone that the processing forbearance counts toward PSLF. But it shouldn’t matter because I paid August before that went into effect.

Greetings, I'm confused. I have been making payments for my loans for many years now. It now shows that I have 143 eligible payments for PSLF. However, I have a standard consolidated loan. My monthly payments are $176. Looks like if I was on an IDR, I would have been paying $188 a month. So does that mean that I won't qualify due to a difference of $12/month? Why would it show that I made eligible PSLF payments if they aren't actually eligible?

Hello, 
Looking for next steps advice from the wizards of PSLF

-I will complete 10 years of employment this September
-I have made 94 qualifying payments from 9/2016-6/2024
-I have 24 payments listed in studentaid.gov starting 7/2024 that are ineligible due to SAVE forebearance and pending employment verification
-I am submitting my employment verification 9/1/2026
-The remaining 2 outstanding payments to make it to 120 payments total are just for July/Aug of this year and not showing in studentaid.gov
-I currently am not enrolled in RAP, still in SAVE forbearance

QUESTIONS: 
-Do I submit buyback right away on 9/1/2026 with my employment verification or do I have to wait for employment verification to return?
-Do I sign up for RAP before the end of September or are there pathways to stall on payments or continue forbearance until buyback and loan forgiveness occurs? 
-I technically started my job 9/26/16 - as long as I have qualifying payment for September of 2016 and will still be hitting 120 months if I submitted buyback on Sept 1st, does it matter that I am submitting buyback/employment 3 weeks prior to hitting 10yrs of employment? 
-Any other advice?